TRAVELLING AS IT IS: ROAD TRIP FROM CUBAO QUEZON CITY TO ATENEO DE MANILA UNIVERSITY

August 11, 2017
MABUHAY!

TRAVELLING AS IT IS! - is an unedited video footage of my travelling experience. My concept of travelling is riding public transportation, road trip from home to a job destination or just a stroll around the neighborhood. You can hear, feel and see the “REAL” sights & sounds of a place or destination that are usually not tourist trail. There are lot of street food to taste, adventures to seek, lots of local people to meet as well as fellow travelers wanting to share their own personal experiences. ENJOYING LIFE - AS IT IS!

Start: CUBAO, QUEZON CITY, METRO MANILA

Destination: ATENEO DE MANILA UNIVERSITY (ADMU)

Mode of Transportation: Van

In this road trip, I was with my co-workers going to our construction project in Ateneo de Manila University (ADMU). We passed thru the busy streets of Quezon City- a highly urbanized and I think the largest city of Metro Manila. We did an ocular inspection to our completed project to check on the punchlist items still ongoing with rectification. 

INNOVATION: DUSTLESS ELECTRIC RANDOM ORBITAL SANDER

June 23, 2016
MABUHAY!
Have you been doing rub concrete in your construction project using traditional grinders? Most likely, it looks like this.

Dirty.
Full of dust.
Hazardous to health.

When I attended World Building Expo (WORLDBEX) at World Trade Center Manila on March 2016, I visited the booth of Globe International Distributor Center Inc, (GIDCI) distributor of MIRKA dustless sanding machine from Finland. They agreed to conduct a product demonstration in one of our project.

 CLICK the LINK to READ the related article: Enhancing Construction Education by Attending Philconstruct 2016

DEMO OF MIRKA ELECTRIC ORBITAL SANDER ON CONCRETE SURFACE

Sanding on Reinforced concrete column

Sanding on Reinforced concrete wall

Sanding on beam and slab soffit

CLICK the LINK to READ the related article: Concrete Construction Productivity Bootcamp 2018

This innovative tool is effective in sanding the concrete surface already applied with a skim coat, removing small concrete laitances or smooth finishing of joint putty on drywall partition and ceiling. With the sanding tool attached to a vacuum, the dust is already controlled thereby making your work very clean and hazard-free to your health.

For the tool specification and variety of sanding tools and accessories, you can visit their website by clicking this link MIRKA ABRASIVES

We should never stop innovating, inventing, discovering, educating and making things if not better, the best.


CLICK the LINK to READ the related article: Quality Issue: Paint Peel-Off

QUALITY ISSUE: CONCRETE HAIRLINE CRACKS

January 31, 2017
MABUHAY!

Another quality issue that requires a careful study on what rectification method to apply is the concrete hairline cracks. This is the most common punch list for rectification during the handover phase of a building construction. Concrete has relatively high compressive strength, but is significantly lower in tensile strength, and as such is usually reinforced with materials that are strong in tension (often steel). The elasticity of concrete is relatively constant at low stress levels but starts decreasing at higher stress levels as matrix cracking develops. Concrete has a very low coefficient of thermal expansion, and as it matures concrete shrinks. Due to shrinkage and tension, all concrete structures will crack to some extent. Concrete hairline cracks manifest in many ways:

HAIRLINE CRACKS ON CONCRETE SLAB

QUALITY ISSUE: PAINT PEEL-OFF

January 6, 2017
MABUHAY!

The most common quality issue or punch list in construction during architectural finishing works is PAINT PEEL-OFF in a concrete masonry wall. This quality issue manifest in many forms:

INTERIOR PEEL-OFF

Interior paint peeling off

Skim coat flaking off

CLICK the LINK to READ the related article: Quality Issue: Concrete Hairline Cracks

EXTERIOR PEEL-OFF

PAINT BUBBLES

CLICK the LINK to READ the related article: Concrete Demolition: A Systematic Way of Knocking Down Concrete

PAINT CRACKS

CLICK the LINK to READ the related article: Work Inter-Phase: Why Proper Coordination is Very Critical in Construction

PAINT BLISTER DUE WATER SEEPAGE

PAINT DISCOLORATION

ROOT CAUSE
Incorrect surface preparation

• Application of masonry putty first to the concrete substrate without primer paint.
• Application of powder-based skim coat or gypsum board putty to correct the wavy surfaces of concrete. Most acrylic based paints and all solvent based paints are not compatible with powder base skim coat. Make sure to use acrylic-based skim coat recommended by the paint manufacturer

Insufficient curing time of concrete surface

• The ideal curing period for concrete is 14 -28 days. Since the Philippines is a tropical country, concrete cure fast due to the intense heat of the sun. I also recommend doing the moisture test for concrete at 14 days. Cut a 1ft x 1ft polyethylene sheet and tape it with duct tape or masking tape on the concrete surface. Observe if there still a manifestation of water droplets, then the concrete is not yet fully cured.
• The concrete surface if not yet cured has high alkalinity expressed in pH reading. Alkaline reacts on paint film causing discoloration and overall deterioration. A fresh concrete surface has 13 to 14 pH reading while 14 days concrete has 7 to 8 pH reading which is very ideal for painting works.

Water seepage

• Water seepage is caused by temperature cracks on concrete surfaces which enable the rainwater or moisture from the exterior side to penetrate on paint coated surfaces causing it to bulge or blister.

Wrong Paint

• Painting the wrong kind of paint will eventually result in paint peel off. Paint for metal or wood is not compatible with concrete surfaces.

PAINT PEEL-OFF ADHESION TEST

This destructive test is being conducted to check whether the paint or the base coat adhere to the concrete surface. If the paint coat detached in the base coat, repainting is only recommended. If the base coat detached on the concrete surface, stripping of paint up to bare concrete is recommended.

PAINTING RECTIFICATION METHOD

Surface Preparation 

• Spot scrapping down to bare concrete to remove all paint cracks, paint bubbles. loose and damage paint.
•  For concrete surfaces with cracks, widen the crack by making a 2 to 3mm V-groove. Patch the groove with a mixture of cement and concrete epoxy. For cracks with water leaks, patch the groove with a mixture of cement and water plug.
• For surfaces with a powder, base skim coat, strip to bare the affected area using a grinder.

Primer

• Apply 1 (one) full coat of primer paint as a base coat.

Putty/Skimcoat

• For correction of uneven and wavy surfaces, spot apply the paint manufacturer's recommended masonry putty or acrylic-based skim coat.

Undercoat

• Apply 1 (one) full coat of primer paint as an undercoat.

Top Coat

• Apply 2 coats of specified paint as a final coat.

CLICK the LINK to READ the related article: Construction of Villa Celine Resort

WORK INTER-PHASE : WHY PROPER COORDINATION IS VERY CRITICAL IN CONSTRUCTION

December 12, 2016
MABUHAY!

Work inter-phase in construction is very important. It is the harmonious coordination of various trades-structural, architectural, electrical, plumbing, fire protection, mechanical and the like to complete a certain scope of work. In a complex real-life construction composed of hundreds or thousands of different activities, one must identify (usually the Project Manager) which activity is the predecessor or successor. The successor cannot start unless the predecessor is not complete. If that is the case, the delay in the construction is inevitable.

Let us study a simple example- the installation of an overhead and base modular cabinet in one of my condominium project. When you say modular, it is already cut to size and ready to install. Let us count how many work inter-phase we have from delivery to final installation.

1. DELIVERY OF MODULAR CABINETS

Delivered pre-fabricated HDF cabinets

Parts of the HDF cabinet still in packaging

2. ASSEMBLY OF MODULAR CABINETS

Assembly of Drawers

CLICK the LINK to READ the related article: Construction of a Happy Kitchen

Assembly of the base cabinet

Assembly of the overhead cabinet and installation of hardware

3. INSTALLATION OF PLUMBING ROUGHING-INS

PVC pipe stub-out for the grease trap already in place before the installation of base cabinet

Hot and cold tapping point are already embedded. They are capped for protection from clogging. 

4. INSTALLATION OF ELECTRICAL ROUGHING-INS

These wires will supply the electricity for the electric stove

5. INSTALLATION OF OVERHEAD CABINET

Checking the level of the bottom part of the overhead cabinet

CLICK the LINK to READ the related article: Design and Build Construction

Then counter check of the level at the top portion

6. INSTALLATION HARDWARE AND HANDLES

7. INSTALLATION OF OPEN SHELVES

8. INSTALLATION OF RANGE HOOD

10. INSTALLATION OF FILLER

Wood filler to seal the gap between the concrete wall and overhead cabinet

11. INSTALLATION OF BASE CABINET

12. CORING FOR GREASE TRAP DRAIN PIPE

Use a hole saw for a perfect fit of the pipe. Seal the gap between the pipe and the base cabinet with polyurethane sealant to prevent the entry of insects.

13 ASSEMBLY OF GREASE TRAP

14. INSTALLATION OF GREASE TRAP

Plumbers installing the grease trap

CLICK the LINK to READ the related article: Construction Education: Installation of Anti Termite Reticulation Pipes

The installed grease trap

15. INSTALLATION OF HARDWARE AND HANDLES

Installation of doors and handles for the base cabinet

Installation of doors and handles for the base cabinet

16. INSTALLATION OF FILLER

The filler will seal the gap between the door jamb and the base cabinet

17. INSTALLATION OF 3/4" THK MARINE PLYWOOD BACKING

Before installing the plywood backing to receive the granite countertop, block out the portion where the kitchen sink and the electric stove will be placed.

18. INSTALLATION OF GRANITE COUNTERTOP

Block out also the portion of the kitchen sink and the stove in the granite countertop

Before fixing the granite countertop, make sure the backing must overlap 

Check the corners make sure the granite countertop and the backing are in a perfect fit

19. INSTALLATION OF KITCHEN SINK AND FAUCET

Seal off with silicone sealant the ream of the kitchen sink in contact with granite countertop to prevent the seepage of water

20. CONNECTING THE SINK TO THE GREASE TRAP

21. INSTALLATION OF ELECTRIC COOKTOP

Make sure the cooktop is squarely fitted on the edges of the granite countertop

CLICK the LINK to READ the related article: Enhancing Construction Education by Attending Philconstruct 2016

The installed electric cooktop

22. CONNECTING THE COOKTOP TO THE ELECTRICAL SUPPLY

All electrical works must be done by a licensed electrician

23. INSTALLATION OF GRANITE SPLASHBOARD

All gaps between the granite countertop and the splashboard must be sealed by a polyurethane sealant

24. INSTALLATION OF ELECTRICAL DEVICES

Make sure the switch plate must be squarely fitted with the granite splashboard

25. FINAL INSPECTION, CLEANING, AND TESTING

The completed base cabinet

The completed overhead cabinet

26. FINISH PRODUCT

The completed installed kitchen cabinet with plumbing fixtures

One would think that for a simple installation of the cabinet would require you 26 work inter-phase and that seems to be exasperating. That is why careful planning is really needed to attain the satisfactory result. Personally, I always adhere to this wise saying, as a matter of fact, I made it my life principle that:

PLANNING without EXECUTION is DAYDREAM but EXECUTION without PLANNING is NIGHTMARE.

CLICK the LINK to READ the related article: Construction of Duplex Resort Villa At Clark Freeport Zone